Anselm Reyle

JANUARY 28 – APRIL 17, 2011ANNA K. MEREDITH GALLERY

Anselm Reyle is a taxidermist. He breathes life into the exhausted or dormant visual motifs of Modernism and reenergizes these familiar forms to make them new. Reyle frequently utilizes clichéd modernist shapes, artificial colors, and non-traditional materials such as Mylar foil and straw bales to extend the prevailing aesthetics of painting and sculpture. In the process, he constructs a bond between art and popular culture, while simultaneously questioning the authorship of the artist and forging a distinct bond between the production of art objects and the marketplace.

Reyle updates the history of modern art by borrowing its visual elements that have become overused or even considered tasteless in contemporary dialogues. These elements range from stripes to gestural drips of paint to fractured abstractions. Each format in Reyle’s arsenal recalls a predecessor and reflects his interest in the codes of taste that determine our attitudes and thoughts. Although an enlivenment or reconsideration of the past is a cornerstone of post-modern thought, Reyle’s approach retains vestiges of the modern era through his emphasis on the personal experience afforded by abstraction. This archeological memory, its subsequent manipulation, and the resulting shift in perspicacity formulate Reyle’s contributions to the art of our time.

Anselm Reyle was organized by Art Center Director Jeff Fleming. The exhibition was accompanied by a fully-illustrated catalogue that features an essay by Fleming and an interview between the artists Jeff Koons and Anselm Reyle.

Funding for Anselm Reyle was provided by the Jacqueline and Myron Blank Exhibition Fund.